12 Wildlife Crimes on the Rise

Wildlife crime comes in many forms, be it poaching, hunting or cruelty for fashion, medicine, sport or just pure profit. Despite national and international efforts by the world's governments and countless wildlife organizations, many wildlife crimes continue undiminished, or are even increasing. Here are 12 wildlife crimes currently plaguing our world.

12. PYTHON SKINNING

The needs of the fashion industry demand an endless supply of python skins from Southeast Asia, and a combination of depressing factors allows their trade to continue unabated, according to a study late last year by the International Trade Centre. Where the practice is semi-legal, and pythons bred in captivity may be sold, this loophole is abused, and many pythons reported as captive are actually wild. Even when smuggling and selling of the skins occurs illegally, enforcement of existing laws is lax. Plus, it’s generally just difficult to get people to care about the plight of snakes. “Compared to the good-looking cuddly animals, snakes are far down the ladder in terms of how people feel about them," said Olivier Caillabet, a co-author of the study. With $1 billion a year to be made, the snakeskin industry doesn’t look to slow down anytime soon. (BBC)

Pangolins are under constant threat from poachers who are after their scales and meat. The huge appetite for pangolin parts comes from China, where — as is the case for a terrible number of poached animals — pseudo-medicine is the root of the problem. Chinese and other Asian traditions hold that consuming pangolin can cure skin problems, cancer, heart disease, impotence and more — practices which have no basis in scientific or medical fact. But tradition is hard to dispel, and long-held beliefs are not easily abandoned. Several busts of pangolin smuggling last year indicate that the illegal pangolin trade isn’t slowing down. (Wildlife Extra)

Unlike most of the entries on this list, bats are not generally the victims of poaching for the commercial use of their meat or parts. Rather, they often suffer from basic human domesticity, urban sprawl and misunderstanding. In other words, bats are most frequently killed by regular folks who see them as pests or a nuisance, or who even accidentally kill the bats during home improvements/repairs/expansions. Federal and state laws in the U.S. often protect bats, regulating their safe removal from homes. In the U.K., bats are protected throughout the country. But continuing human encroachment combined with the still-spreading white-nose syndrome means the bat population continues to decline. (Bat Conservation Trust)

Illegal egg theft is an unusual wildlife crime in that its perpetrators aren’t generally looking to turn a profit. They’re mostly hobbyists. They collect rare eggs like other people collect stamps or coins. Except collecting rare stamps and coins doesn’t threaten the populations of whole species. A rare bird means a rare egg, and many collectors wouldn’t think twice about snatching a specimen for themselves if given the opportunity, even though they know full well that taking such an egg means harming the reproductive opportunities of already struggling animals. Egg collecting was a fairly traditional childhood hobby in the U.K. until 1954, when the Protection of Birds Act put a stop to the fun. Yet, a small but determined number of collectors continue on: Just last week, a U.K. man was convicted of stealing hundreds of eggs, all belonging to protected species. (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds)

In the U.K., the poisoning of raptors is an ongoing problem. The culprits tend to be landowners and farmers who lose precious livestock to attacks from the birds of prey. But the birds are often threatened or endangered, and important components of the local ecosystem, and so are protected by law. But often, the laws are so overwritten and complicated that they simply go unenforced, leading to further raptor deaths. (BBC)

A lot of people have a taste for exotic pets, legal or otherwise. And when it’s “otherwise,” there are plenty of smugglers willing to skirt the law in order to fill the need and make big bucks. The crime can entail any number of exotic pets, but there is a particular focus of exotic turtles, snakes and other reptiles. Just last month, hundreds of reptiles were seized at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand, in the process of being smuggled out of the country. This included 340 turtles, 65 snakes, and assorted geckos, chameleons and more. Not only can the smuggling subject the animals to cruel and grueling conditions, but once introduced to their new homes, the reptiles can become hazards to the non-native ecosystems. In Florida right now, for example, a widespread python culling is underway to curb a surging population brought about by escaped and abandoned pet pythons invading the Everglades. (PETA)

There are seven species of sea turtle on Earth, and all of them face being poached for their meat, eggs, shells and other parts. Popular as a food source, sea turtle meat and eggs are considered delicacies in many places throughout the world. Sea turtle shells and other parts are also used decoratively, whether in ceremonial rituals or simply to make jewelry and other trinkets. In traditional Chinese medicine, ground sea turtle bones are used for longevity. And in some places, simply displaying a taxidermied sea turtle in the home is a status symbol. The illegal sea turtle trade continues almost unchecked because existing laws are difficult to enforce. (SEE Turtles)

Badger persecution is an issue of particular concern in the U.K. Its most common form is badger baiting, a form of hunting in which people dig into badger dens — called setts — and set their hunting dogs on the badgers, or have the dogs burrow directly into setts to attack the badgers in their homes. Even the government is getting in on the act. With badgers carrying a strain of tuberculosis that also affects livestock, government-sanctioned cullings have been instituted, much to the outrage of some animal-rights activists. Recently, PETA named musician Brian May their Person of the Year 2012 for his work speaking out against badger culling. (Human Society International)

Shark finning is a booming business that provides the key ingredient for shark-fin soup, a delicacy that shows no signs of going out of style. Sadly, the method for procuring the fins involves catching sharks, cutting off their fins, and then leaving the animals to die suffocating, unable to properly swim or defend themselves. Sometimes, definned sharks wash up on shore, providing grim evidence of the cruel and unnecessary shark-fin trade. But there is some hope that fake shark fins will both fill the market’s demands and curb the practice of killing sharks simply for their fins. (Humane Society International)

Tigers have long been one of the most poached animals on Earth. They are desired not only for their unique pelts, but also for many of their other parts, which are used in traditional Chinese medicine. Demand for the latter has actually increased in recent years. As China’s economy grows and its citizens become more affluent, access to the rare “medicine” increases. There is also an increasing cultural pride that has fueled a resurgence in the traditional medicine that uses tiger bones, eyes, teeth, whiskers and more to treat a variety of ailments. The Chinese government officially bans these uses of tiger parts, but the laws are not always strictly enforced. (Tigers in Crisis)

Rhinoceros poaching has exploded in recent years, all due to a booming market for their horns, which traditionally are believed throughout Asia (particularly in Vietnam) to hold medicinal properties. The horns are widely thought to be an aphrodisiac, a cure for convulsions and even a treatment for hangovers. Of course, there is no scientific evidence to support such beliefs, but demand for rhino horns continues to grow. Depressingly, 2012 set a record for rhino poaching in South Africa, with 668 rhinos killed in that country alone. (Guardian U.K.)

For hundreds of years, elephants have been hunted and killed for their ivory tusks. The ivory trade traditionally has been and today remains an important part of many countries’ economies. For many people, the word “poaching” itself brings the killing of elephants to mind. Despite a dip in elephant poaching due to international efforts in the early 1990s, the barbaric practice has not only not slowed down in recent years, but has actually experienced an alarming surge. Right now, China is the top buyer of ivory in the world. As wealth grows in that country, so does its demand for ivory. And for impoverished African nations, it’s impossible to resist the lucrative opportunity to provide the elephant tusks that feed the market. Just this month, 12 elephants in Kenya were butchered for their tusks. "That is a big number for one single incident," said Samuel Takore of the Kenya Wildlife Service. "We have not had such an incident in recent years, I think dating back to before I joined the service [in the 1980s]." (BBC)